Movie notes: ‘Monsters’ rakes in 3-D cash

Ginormica is shown through 3-D glasses at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January. The 3-D effect was a major selling point of ‘Monsters vs. Aliens.’

Hollywood loves 3-D precisely because it’s a gimmick that allows them to charge more for movie tickets. At least that’s the consensus of lots of critics and box-office analysts.

“Monsters vs. Aliens” did nothing to disprove that. The animated adventure earned $58.2 million opening weekend — tops for 2009 &#151 and 3-D was the reason.

According to the Associated Press, some 56 percent of the film’s take came from 3-D-equipped auditoriums, though only 28 percent of the more than 7,000 auditoriums showing the film showed it in 3-D. And $5.2 million came from 143 IMAX screens.

“This shows that 3-D is here to stay and there’s an audience for it,” Paul Degarabedian, president of Media by Numbers, told the L.A. Times.

Love it or hate it, 3-D will be with us for awhile. The L.A. Times says more than 40 3-D projects are due in the next three years, starting with Pixar’s “Up,” which opens Memorial Day weekend.

I’m not sure which category (love vs. hate) I fall in yet. I saw “Bolt” in 3-D last year, and I kept peeking over the top of those retro-looking, Buddy Holly-style glasses to see what I’d be missing without them. Didn’t seem like much. At least, not enough to make up for $2 surcharge.